Jerry Hall, A Talent to a Muse

If there were any further proof required of the much-vaunted convergence of the worlds of art, fashion and celebrity, the model-actress Jerry Hall is about to sell part of her art collection at Sotheby’s and simultaneously launch her new book, “My Life in Pictures” (Quadrille Publishing) – all to coincide with London’s “Frieze week” in mid-October. Both the auction and the book reveal Hall’s connoisseurship and her close relationships with distinguished artists.

Best known as the supermodel who epitomized 1970s glamour, as the former wife of Mick Jagger and as an actress with a decade of treading the boards on Broadway and the West End, Hall is now bringing to the surface another role she has played since she arrived in Paris from Gonzales, Tex., at age 16 – the role of muse.

Her beauty and famously long legs, long hair and long Texan drawl make her a compelling model and celebrity, but her wit, intelligence and conviviality elevate her from mere subject to inspiration. Two former romantic partners, Mick Jagger and Bryan Ferry, have each written songs about her, including the Rolling Stones’ hit “Miss You.” Photographers from Newton, Avedon, Bailey and Horst to Lagerfeld and Leibovitz have created amazing images around her, sumptuously showcased and commented upon by Hall in “My Life in Pictures.”

But more surprising are the works of contemporary art that Hall has inspired. A portrait by Francesco Clemente (estimated to sell at $154,000 to $231,000) is to be expected, but one by Ed Ruscha (est. $38,500 to $53,900) is an unanticipated rarity. And although 87-year-old Lucian Freud, whose work commands the highest prices of any living artist, is famous for painting his friends, who knew that Jerry Hall was counted among them?

His “Eight Months Gone” is a painterly depiction of a nude Hall when she was eight months pregnant. Its estimate of $462,000 to $616,000 may seem low compared with the $6.5 million achieved for Freud’s nude, pregnant Kate Moss in 2005 – but as it measures only 4 by 6 inches, it’s actually 10 times more expensive on a per-inch basis.

Hall was considering putting another portrait, by Andy Warhol, on the block, but her children staged an “intervention”; it remains on the wall of her London home. She is, however, selling a Warhol dollar sign painting that the artist gave her in recognition for her work hosting the short-lived New York cable show “Andy Warhol’s TV.” With an estimate of $185,000 to $231,000, Hall must be pleased that Warhol didn’t pay her by check.

Other highlights of the sale include another Lucian Freud, “Quinces,” from 1944 (est. $231,000 to $308,000), and the art-world darling Frank Auerbach’s “Head of Helen Gillespie IV.” The estimate for this relatively difficult piece is $1.07 million to $1.38 million, which seems reasonable as “Head of Helen Gillespie I,” from the collection of artist R.B. Kitaj, realized $1.9 million in early 2008, while “Head of Helen Gillespie VI” went unsold at Christie’s in February this year.

In the auction business, they say offering art for sale is motivated by the “three D’s” – death, divorce and debt. However, Hall has cited two other increasingly common reasons for selling art: the fact that prices have increased to where it’s irresistible to cash in, and the desire to clear house and get a fresh start. And with that fresh start, who knows which artists she will inspire next?